MJ didn’t have the chance to live as a normal child. He stated that he was physically
and emotionally abused by his father from a young age, enduring incessant rehears-
als, whippings and name-calling. He also credited his father's strict discipline as play-
ing a large part in his success. In one altercation—later recalled by Marlon Jackson—
Joseph held Michael upside down by one leg and "pummeled him over and over again
with his hand, hitting him on his back and buttocks". Joseph would also trip or push
his male children into walls. One night while Jackson was asleep, Joseph climbed into
his room through the bedroom window. Wearing a fright mask, he entered the room
screaming and shouting. Joseph said he wanted to teach his children not to leave the
window open when they went to sleep. For years afterwards, Jackson said he suf-
fered nightmares about being kidnapped from his bedroom. In 2003, Joseph admitted
to the BBC that he had whipped Jackson as a child. Jackson first spoke openly about
his childhood abuse in a 1993 interview with Oprah Winfrey. He said that during his
childhood he often cried from loneliness and would sometimes start to vomit upon
seeing his father. In Jackson's other high profile interview, Living with Michael Jack-
son (2003), the singer covered his face with his hand and began crying when talking
about his childhood abuse. Jackson recalled that Joseph sat in a chair with a belt in
his hand as he and his siblings rehearsed and that "if you didn't do it the right way, he
would tear you up, really get you".
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